How to Stay Happy and Healthy During Finals

Not too long ago I’m sure we were all thinking “exams are months away”. Well it’s now April, and that can only mean one thing to uOttawa students – final exams are in full swing. From now until the end of April, Morisset library will be filled with students studying or trying to find a study spot, the lines at Timmies will be long, and you will probably overhear conversations which can sound something like “I just need to get ___ to pass the course”. It’s normal to experience some stress during finals, but too much stress can lead to burnout, and even harm your mental and physical health. Being a Science major for the past three years has taught me a thing or two about finals stress and how to cope with it. Below I have listed some foolproof ways to help you stay healthy and happy during finals, I hope you try some of them out!

Remove Yourself from the Stress

I remember in first year I would always hit up the library during finals, but it actually caused me more harm than good. Being surrounded by constantly stressed students and the terrible lack of outdoor life really made me feel depressed and I actually did less studying than I hoped. Since then, I rarely go back there and study elsewhere. If I do have to study in the library, I make sure to get my brain out of the finals week environment by taking a walk off campus (the Canal is my favourite spot). Another option is to study in coffee shops or common spaces off campus, because most of the time it isn’t filled with students cramming for their finals, which helps me be more productive and happy. Check out the Ottawa Public Library, the NAC, or here for some great coffee shops near campus to study.

Sleep and Take Breaks

When you say the word “exams” I’m sure a lot of you can picture students pulling off all-nighters and putting off sleep to study. However, not sleeping enough can actually affect your memory, concentration, and the ability to learn – 3 crucial tools to have when you are studying for finals. Instead, develop a study plan that allows you to have breaks in between studying and also lets you clock in 6-8 hours of sleep per night. In regards to naps, studies have actually shown that naps are highly ineffective, but I get it, some of us just need a nap to recharge; so instead of taking that 3-hour nap at 7 pm, Scientists are telling us to take naps before 3pm and to make sure the naps are less than an hour, otherwise it can mess up your sleeping patterns. I’m a huge believer in taking breaks, because trying to study for 3 hours without taking any breaks is terrible. Your brain just stops processing information at some point. Instead, try studying using the Pomodoro technique. I’ve implanted this into my life and I have noticed so much more productivity and less procrastination! Essentially, pick 1 task to work on, and work on it for 25 minutes without any distractions. After the 25-minute period, take a 5-10-minute break where you do nothing related to studying – go for a walk, have a snack, watch a quick YouTube video, or whatever it is as long as it is not related to your studying. Repeat this technique 3 times, and after you’ve completed the entire cycle, treat yourself to a longer break, because you earned it! Read more about this amazing technique here. Also remember to take a few minutes each day to just do nothing, to help your body relax and recharge.

Move your Body and Breathe

During finals we often tend to just sit at a desk for hours and hours, which actually hurts our academic performance by reducing blood flow to our brain. Rather than just sitting around in a desk all day, take some time every hour to go for a quick walk, stretch your body out, or even hit the gym to do a quick workout. This not only increases your blood flow, but also helps reduce stress levels, and even gives an endorphin boost to help you get more studying done. Before an exam, be sure to take a few minutes to breathe to help with the pre-exam jitters. Take some deep breaths to help relax your mind and provide your brain with more oxygen. A quick exercise that helps me a lot is to imagine breathing in a square pattern (as seen below). Breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, breath out for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, and repeat until you feel more relaxed.

Get Pumped

Before you write an exam, a lot of us tend to get anxiety and stressed out. Try pumping yourself up for the exam by listening to some upbeat music. I recently started to do this, and it really helps. About 15-20 minutes before an exam, listen to some upbeat or motivational music to help boost your confidence and get in the mindset that you can slay this exam! I made a playlist for you all to check out with some tunes to help you get pumped for your finals, check it out here.

I hope these exam tips helped you guys out. As finals season can be tough, just remember that your GPA doesn’t define who you are, and to take care of yourself! After you get through finals, as one of my favourite actors Aziz Ansari famously says – “treat yourself”, because you deserve it! Good luck on your finals, and if you ever need help take advantage of the free workshops and activities uOttawa offers here.